1999 Honda S2000

• An early pre-facelift UK-market example superbly presented in New Formula Red
• In remarkably original condition, just 32,000 miles, with service history, book-pack, two keys and original sales invoice
• Honda's 50th birthday present to itself, the S2000 had an enviable combination of ingredients
• With 237bhp, its VTEC engine was the most powerful naturally aspirated 2.0-litre four-cylinder ever fitted to a production car
• High-revving engine mated to a 6-speed close-ratio gearbox with a deliciously short throw and backed up by a stiff 'X-beam' steel shell, all wishbone suspension and a LSD
• The S2000 was produced from 1999 to 2009, during which time over 110,000 sold, with just 8,000 or so coming to the UK

The Honda S2000 originated from the ‘SSM’ concept car that debuted at the 1995 Tokyo Motor Show. This concept had been developed by Italian design house Pininfarina, but the ultimate design of the production S2000 was penned by Daisuke Sawai.

Production of the S2000 started in 1999 at the Takanezawa Plant, designating these early cars as the ‘AP1’ model and then carrying through to the ‘AP2’ that concluded a decade later.

Back in 1999, if you wanted a back-to-basics roadster that was quick, handsome and had a stiff chassis with 50/50 weight distribution, you didn’t have too many options. The MX-5 wasn’t far off, but you could hardly call that quick – and the MGF was little better.

Before the S2000, roadsters generally came with scuttle shake – that awful vibration of the windscreen and dash when you hit a bump – and Honda’s motorsport engineers, who were tasked with making the S2000, were determined to eliminate this. Their solution? The high X-bone frame. This steel monocoque chassis and body structure gave the S2000 levels of rigidity previously unheard of in open-top cars.

The S2000’s engine also set the Honda apart from the rest. It produces 237bhp from a 2.0-litre block – impressive enough today, let alone back in 1999 – and it did so without forced induction, too. What’s more, the S2000 also revs to 9000rpm and that four-pot is placed so far back in the engine bay, it technically made the Honda a front/mid-engine sports car.

The sweet spot is unquestionably in the 7000-8500 range, and the gorgeous six-speed box makes keeping the engine revved up an easy task, snicking around the gate with an easy, metallic charm. Basically, there hadn’t been a roadster with this level of focus on the driver since the Lotus Elise.

The seating position is the first clue that this car takes its sporting credentials rather seriously. You’re sat on the floor with your legs stretched out in front, like a 1950s Le Mans racer. The first thing you notice staring you in the face is the huge digital rev counter. This is the next clue to the nature of this machine; all other dials are secondary.

The alloy gear knob is perfectly placed under your left palm on top of the high central transmission tunnel, which juts into the cabin and limits space for larger drivers. It’s so intrusive because it sprouts from the gearbox directly under the lever – it's why the shift feels so direct.

EVO magazine said in 2020: "Today the S2000 is seen as one of the greatest cars Honda has ever made."

The car presented here is an early (AP1) pre-facelift UK-market example superbly presented in the rarer colour of New Formula Red. In remarkably original condition, having covered just 32,000 miles, it comes with a comprehensive service history (mostly with Honda main dealers), its complete book-pack, two keys and original sales order form and invoice from Hendy Lennox Honda from October 1999.

Trying to find early standard UK S2000s with low mileage and history is becoming extremely difficult. Often, especially with modern-classic cars – the Audi TT is the same – it is the original design that ages the best and is the purest, and thus most coveted/collectable, example of its type.